Spaceknight Saturdays: The Penultimate!

John Byrne comes in to ink and modernize Steve Ditko's breakdowns this issue, just in time for the war between the two generations of Spaceknights. On one side, Rom, the Spaceknight Squadron, Brandy Clark and a remaining handful of Galadorian humans. On the other, lots of nasty Spaceknights with cannons for hands who want to wipe out weak weak humanity, including their own, since they just melted every knight's human remains!

Rom and friends have just walked into the middle of things and right away, Byrne's influence manages to make even Seeker a little badass.
As much as a pink fighter jet with bird wings can be, at any rate. Meanwhile, Rom's honorable stance against killing isn't doing him any favors. And as a living shield, he's not performing miracles either.
There goes more humanity. Sure, here humans are a dime a dozen, but on Galador, this is all that's left:
Not very inspiring. War ensues, where every single human except Brandy is wiped out. Yes, even Eyepatch Girl.
Up in the Dark Tower, we finally meet the corrupt Spaceknight who's leading these renegades. Enter DOMINOR!
Just another frustrated handless monster, or is there more up his... uh... gun?

MELODRAMA BREAK
Ok, now back to the action. Scanner has detected the other returning Spaceknights at the edge of her sensor range.
So it becomes imperative that the Squadron get to the Dark Tower's communications center to make that important long-distance call. But could they lose the war before they can even call for reinforcements? As the enter through the bowels of the building, Seeker is left to be killed as he takes on a large NextGen Spaceknight force.
Scanner, with Trapper's help, reaches the communications center, while Rom heads to the top to talk to Dominor. Turns out Dominor's not too happy with his goons destroying their humanities. His plan was to make the strongest Spaceknights, weed out the genetically weak, then return to being humans with a new, purer gene pool. At least HE'S got his humanity hidden away somewhere. So he offers Rom a deal: If he gives him Brandy Clark to mate with, he'll let her live. Quoth Rom:
Next week: It's AWNNNNNNNNNNNNNN!

Comments

Anonymous said…
No matter how heroic you are: if you charge a handless killer cyborg with only a sticj, you will end MERPized.

(That's a reference to Middle Earth RPG gruesome critics table that only a veteran geek comprends).

Roger
Siskoid said…
Yeah I.C.E.'s games went into particularly heavy detail on their crit tables. My brother invested heavily in MERP and I must have a copy of Cyberspace here somewhere that is much the same.
Felicity Walker said…
This and the following issue were memorable stories from my childhood. Even now the robot designs hold up pretty well. My favourite Spaceknight was Scanner, maybe because it seemed like she had glasses!
John Byrn's inks in this issue helped diminish Steve Dikto's crappy penciling i had come to loathe. I always especially hated the way he made ROM's eyes. that unfortunately was pretty self evident in this issue still. and even more unfortunately the conclusion would be done again by just Dikto alone which means we had to see the ROM saga come to an end in an art style that should have stayed in the 40s & 50s.
Siskoid said…
He was principally known as a 60s artist, but same difference.
Siskoid, i noticed some of your ROM followers also happen to be Micronaut fans. my latest posting entry is about that and the toy line to comic and Bill Mantlo connection might have something to do with it.